Aurelio's Dilemma

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

The world was murky at first, all black, all dark. Slowly, Aurelio opened his eyes, and it took a few seconds for his vision to adjust.

Leslie's leg, a few inches to his right. That was the first thing he saw. His brows furrowed. Only when he shifted did he realize he was lying down on someone's bed. Pressing his hand into the mattress, he lifted himself up a little, and he realized Leslie was sitting in a chair next to the bed.

"Hey," Leslie said, twisting in her seat so she could face him better. "Don't get up."

Aurelio didn't continue getting up, but he supported his half upright position with his elbow. "What happened?" he asked, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

"We're not sure." Worry glistened in Leslie's eyes. "You kind of just...fainted? Almost. You kept saying that you were so scared, and then it's like your body shut down so we dragged you here."

"Scared?" Aurelio mumbled. To be fair the symptoms were strangely similar to fear, but mentally he hadn't exactly felt it. Like his body had been ahead of his brain. "How long have I been out?"

Leslie checked her phone. "About five hours."

Aurelio's jaw dropped.

"Five hours!"

Startled, Aurelio quickly pulled himself upright, but then Leslie caught his arm.

"Elio," she said. "You haven't slept for like a week now and you've been constantly on the edge. Go back to sleep or I'll smack your carotid artery."

Aurelio frowned. "Um...My carotid artery?"

"Yeah. It's right here," Leslie said, reaching over to brush her finger along a patch of skin on Aurelio's neck, near his throat. The entire area tingled at her touch. "If I put a little pressure on this, your body will overreact and you'll faint."

"Overreact."

"Yeah."

Aurelio heaved in a breath and let his head down on the pillow again. "No need," he mumbled, closing his eyes. "Your face makes me sleepy."

"You know, that's actually a compliment," Leslie said. "And it makes me really happy."

The door creaked, and then footsteps sounded. "I heard talking. He woke up?" Matt asked Leslie, keeping his voice down.

Aurelio opened his eyes and looked at Matt. "Yeah." He bit the inside of his cheek. "Thanks for the help, guys. I'm--"

"I'm gonna throw you out of this window if you apologize," Matt said. "Ah, by the way, Leslie was about to call your parents when you passed out but I told her to calm down because I knew you wouldn't wanna tell them." Matt leant forward and slapped Aurelio's shoulder. "You're welcome, bud."

Aurelio's eyes widened, then he frowned at Leslie.

"Don't frown at me like that," Leslie said, smiling as she gently poked Aurelio's brow. "I panicked at first! For a second I couldn't even understand what was happening. Then I realized the exhaustion must've finally gotten to you."

"Yeah." Matt crossed over the mess of clothes and bottles on the floor to the other side of the room. He pulled a drawer near the bed open, rummaged through it, then sighed hopelessly. "I can't find my third ring." Matt looked at Leslie. "Leslie, have some shame. Stop stealing my stuff."

"Oh my God," Leslie laughed. "Asshole." She grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it at him. "It's probably lost somewhere in this mess." She pointed at the floor. "Not my fault your room looks like a dumpster."